Know your audience - Club Matters Sport England · Know your audience These statistics provide you...

Know your audience

These statistics provide you with an overview, which can help you to build a picture of the number of disabled people in our population. As well as sport participation and the number of people with certain impairments, it outlines key statistics on barriers.

1 Census - 2011. 2 The Inclusive and Accessible Stadia Report Sept 2015, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Department for Work and Pensions, Office for Disability Issues.

Impairment Statistics The following facts show the numbers of disabled people in the UK with different types of impairments.

3 Sport England Mapping Disability Resource. 4 Action on Hearing Loss. 5 NHS purchasing and supply agency. 6 RNIB Sight Loss UK 2012 report. 7 Dwarf Sports Association UK. 8 Scope.

8 Scope. 9 Papworth Trust. 10 The Office for National Statistics Psychiatric Morbidity report 2001. 11 Department of Health. 12 Long term conditions and mental health - the cost of co-morbidities. The King’s Fund and Centre for Mental Health. 2012. 13 The Inclusive and Accessible Stadia Report September 2015, Department for Culture Medial and Sport, Department for Work and Pensions, Office for Disability Issues.

Participation Statistics

14 Sport England APS9. 15 EFDS Lifestyle Report. 16 EFDS Barriers to Participation Report.

English Federation of Disability Sport SportPark Loughborough University 3 Oakwood Drive Loughborough Leicestershire LE11 3QF

Tel: 01509 227750 Email: [email protected] Web: www.efds.co.uk Twitter: @Eng_Dis_Sport

This document is available in a Word document. Please email: [email protected] Registered Charity No. 1075180

Engaging disabled people in sport and physical activity

The national charity, the English Federation of Disability Sport (EFDS), has developed this resource. We have created a variety of pages that provide organisations with advice and support on how to improve their engagement with disabled people.

Effective engagement While the resource’s title refers to ‘engaging disabled people’, successful engagement also needs to involve:

• Disabled people directly

• Disabled people’s families and/or guardians

• Disabled people’s carers and supporters

• People who work for disabled people’s organisations in a paid or voluntary capacity

• Public advocates

• Academics

• Others with an active interest in disability issues

We highlight the benefits and impact of effective engagement in the following four key areas:

1 Gaining local insight and intelligence:

Understanding the needs of the market

• Increased desire and take up by disabled people to take part in sport and physical activity

• Better knowledge in activity promotions

• Improved connectivity with parents, carers and individuals through consultation

What insight is available or what do you need to find out first?

2 Improved communication and market reach:

Connecting with disabled people

Key principles to help drive participation

Drive awareness1. Use the channels I already trust

2. Stay local to me

Engage the audience3. Don’t lead with my impairment

4. Talk to as many of my values as possible5. Continue to fulfil my values in

new ways

Offer support and reassurance6. Reassure me I’m going to fit in

7. Make me feel I can do it8. Make it easy for me to tell you my needs

9. Ensure my first experience is good10. Encourage me via existing advocates

3 Workforce development:

Building capacity in the workforce

• Better skilled, more informed, confident and competent workforce delivering sport and physical activities for disabled people

• Greater confidence in delivering sport for disabled people

• Greater capability within the sector

• More volunteers and support workers to support the delivery of sport for disabled people

• Increased numbers of disabled people becoming coaching and leaders

4 4. Funding and investment:

Increasing financial resources

• The potential for increased investment into sport for disabled people

• Greater availability of resources through improved efficiency and partnership working

• Increased opportunities developed

Checklist You can get more information on these four areas in the documents on the specific topics. If you are not sure where to start you may want to refer to the checklist below to help you identify where you need to concentrate your efforts.

Improve your provider engagement. Use this checklist as a guide to where you need to focus your efforts.

Who is your audience? eg. older people, wheelchair users or young people

What insight is available or what do you need to find out first?

Who will you work with to reach your main audiences? Eg. project partners, local contacts, clubs and disability organisations

How knowledgeable and confident in disability are the people involved in the work?

How inclusive and accessible are your marketing communications to your target audiences?

How will you monitor the success and impact? With whom will you share your better practice?

If you need more information on engaging disabled people in sport and physical activity, please contact us.

English Federation of Disability Sport SportPark Loughborough University 3 Oakwood Drive Loughborough Leicestershire LE11 3QF



1

Engaging disabled people through effective use of research and insight

The English Federation of Disability Sport (EFDS) considers research and insight as a vital part of the charity’s work. We have increased our focus and support in this area to understand more about disabled people, their lifestyles, influencers and motivations.

Why do we need research and insight? Research and insight can help us to understand what sport and physical activities disabled people enjoy and what they want to take part in. It asks disabled people their views and opinions of sport, what they enjoy doing and who they enjoy taking part with. What research already exists that can help you understand what disabled people want? There is a lot of secondary data (research conducted by others). This could answer some of the main questions you have. These include what sports and activities disabled people enjoy doing and how you can provide something better, which appeals to them. To what extent are disabled people interested in sport? How does it fit into their lives? EFDS’s Lifestyle Survey in 2013 shows that 7 in 10 disabled people want to do more sport or activity. The same research gave insight into disabled people’s lives and where sport and activity fits. It also shows the types of sport disabled people find interesting and how they want to take part in them. For example, they may prefer to take part with a mix of disabled and non-disabled people. What stops disabled people from taking part in sport? Research shows that the main barriers preventing disabled people from being more active can be grouped into three categories.

These are:

• Physical barriers

• Logistical barriers

• Psychological barriers being the most restrictive

Psychological barriers refer to the views and opinions of disabled and non-disabled people. They refer to the capability of disabled people to take part in activities and the suitability of activities for disabled people.

The Understanding Barriers to Participation report highlights the different barriers disabled people face, as well as indicating barriers which are more prevalent for people with certain impairment types.

How many disabled people currently do sport or physical activity? Sport England’s Active People Survey (now called Active Lives) provides the answer to this. It is a national survey designed to capture how active the nation is. It provides statistics of the proportion of disabled people currently taking part in activity.

In addition, Sport England has an interactive tool that allows you to look at the data in different ways: activepeople.sportengland.org/Query

How do we encourage disabled people to try our sport? Feedback from disabled people shows that in order to offer activities that are more likely to appeal to them, do not focus on disability. Instead, try to link your activity to their values - the things that they hold important in life.

EFDS’s research report ‘Motivate Me’ outlines six key values that disabled people have. The more values that you link to, the more appealing your activity will be.

EFDS’s report ‘Talk to Me’ outlines 10 principles that providers can follow to make their activity more attractive to disabled people. Our ‘Principles in action’ document gives examples of how other providers have applied the various principles.

What other opportunities have other people delivered? There are a number of case studies for all the reports mentioned above. They give examples of ways of providing inclusive provision to disabled people. In addition, EFDS’s Active Together report offers even more examples of ways in which to provide inclusive provision – where disabled and non-disabled people can take part together

Ask yourself, do you know if what you are currently providing is the right thing?

Do you know what disabled people think about what you currently provide? Think about conducting some monitoring and evaluation of your activities.

Use membership forms to capture whether or not people consider themselves to be disabled to know the number of disabled people taking part.

Provide participants with a way to give feedback about the activity to understand what you are doing well and areas where you could improve.

Do you know how to make changes to your offer to make them more appealing? You need to ask disabled people what they think about new ideas and how they could be more appealing.

Consult with disabled people in your local area. Perhaps talk to some people who are already taking part or approach local disability groups or charities. Share your ideas and ask for their feedback of what they would like to see.

Think about asking other relevant stakeholders (such as leaders, coaches etc) for their opinions too.

As people change over their lifetime, their likes and dislikes change too. Remember to review your insight regularly to assess trends or gaps for people from different age groups and so on.



For more information about EFDS research and insight, please visit our website: www.efds.co.uk

2

Reaching more disabled people through accessible and inclusive communications

Disabled people are a large proportion of our population, so an important audience to consider when communicating. Accessible and inclusive communications is about reaching more people, not just disabled people.

Your words, images, designs and websites all play a part in encouraging more people to be active.

There are still a number of different factors that can prevent groups of people or individuals from receiving communications. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to communicating with disabled people. The way in which some disabled people access communications may be different to non-disabled people. People with different impairments have different needs and experience different barriers to accessing information.

Are you open to conversations? Communication is two-way. Providing contact points (email and phone number at least) means you are open to further questions and requests. Some disabled people may have additional support queries related to your opportunities. Providing this extra information could be the make or break for a person wanting to be more active.

How do you anticipate the needs of disabled people and diverse groups? Often asking people in advance what their communications preferences are, will help you in the long term. Market research and extra questions on membership forms help to find out more. Knowing what formats and channels people prefer in advance can save you time and money. It can help you to plan future communications too.

Do you provide your communications in a range of formats? Everyone has a personal communication preference - not just disabled people. Some people prefer e-newsletters rather than direct mail; text message rather than a phone call. Some people may want it in large print or even in a different language.

Fonts, colour and images can often cause issues for many people. Think about using san serifs fonts, testing your colour contrasts and making sure your images portray positive pictures of disabled people in your activity.

When it comes to digital and online communications, code and content matter. Websites are the starting point for many audiences. You will need to make sure your website is accessible for various groups, including the design layout, clear content, links and alternative text for your images.

You may rely on social media to do your promotion, but remember there are certain groups of people who may use it less, if not at all. Mixing up channels and formats helps everyone.

Finally, remember to tell people what formats you provide your communications in. For example, if your newsletter is available in Word format and audio file then promote this information as it may spark someone to ask you for a copy.

Providing this extra support information could be the make or break for a person wanting to be more active.

Are your messages clear and do you use plain English? The national average reading age is nine! Are your communications jargon-free? Sometimes, those of us in sport and physical activity get lost in our environment. We believe everyone understands the technical words and all the acronyms. Shorter, easier sentences to read help everyone to learn more about your activity. EasyRead format can often be a good way to communicate to a range of audiences as it provides visual symbols and clear sentences.

Who is responsible for and who pays for alternative formats? You may be asked for alternative formats and you should always be prepared for requests. Providing every format is not always essential. Digital communications and technology means often people ask for easy-to-arrange alternative formats. Some formats do cost, so have suppliers to hand and know rough costs in advance. Remember that your disabled members may be able to assist you with alternative formats too. Eg. A member, who is deaf and uses British Sign Language, may be able to interpret for your club’s promotional video etc.

How do you monitor the impact of your communications with disabled people? It is a good move to get disabled people involved in all your communications, from design to implementation. Users can help you to decide what works and what does not in advance. Having a range of people, with different impairments, from different age groups, BAME groups or religions etc. can really support your work to be more inclusive and accessible.

You may be asked for alternative formats and you should always be prepared for requests.

Access for all: inclusive communicationsReaching more people in sport and physical activity through inclusive and accessible communications

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2139_3_InclusiveCommsGuide_A4_44pp.indd 1 12/06/2015 11:15

Using design to improve accessibility 23 Using design to improve accessibility 23

ALL CAPITALS ARE HARDER TO READ

Use upper and lower, also known as ‘sentence case’

Serif fonts like Times New Roman are too fussy

Do not use type sizes that are below 12 pt

San serif fonts like Arial or Verdana are clearer

12 point should be minimum

14 pt for Easy Read

words, titles or sentences makes it harder for the reader to identify the words. The most accessible style of writing to read is ‘sentence case’. Again, if you would like to highlight words, use bold, or increase the size of the font.

Your font choice can have a big impact on the accessibility of your communications. One of the most accessible and most widely available fonts is Arial; others include Calibri, Century Gothic, Trebuchet and Verdana. All these fonts are “sans serif” fonts. A serif is a little decorative line that is found on letters in some fonts like Times New Roman or Georgia. “Sans serif” means “without the decorative line”. Some people find it difficult to read serif fonts, because they distract the eyes and the brain from the overall shape of the letter. The use of

serif fonts in digital publications can also be problematic as the pixilation on screen can distort the serif, causing the word to blur around the edges.

Font size 12 is considered to the minimum size at which people read comfortably. For electronic communications, most readers will be able to customise the size of the font on their computer screen on via their internet browser, but it is still considered best practice not to publish anything smaller than the equivalent of Arial 12 pt. For audiences where Easy Read communications are required there is a recommended minimum of 14 pt. font size.

22 Using design to improve accessibility22 Using design to improve accessibility

Most people in the UK read from left to right so it is best to left align your copy. When your text is left aligned, the eyes and brain know where to go to at the start of every line. When text is centralised the reader has to work harder to find the start of each line.

When laying out your copy use unjustified text where possible. Justified or centralised text puts uneven spaces between words. Unjustified text is easier to read as the spaces between words are regular and the reader knows what to expect.

Often we underline words or titles to add emphasis, but this can make the word harder to read for some people. Your eyes have to work harder to separate the word from the line to read it. Emphasis to a word or title can be added by using bold font or

4.1 Use of fonts and text layout

Jusified text is harder to read as spacing is odd

Avoid italics or underlining for emphasis

Text is unjustified for even space between words

Use bold or scale for emphasis

Text should not becentred

Text is ranged left or left-aligned

a larger or different style of font. Italics are commonly used to denote a real name or a quote or to add emphasis, but they can make the words more difficult to read. The slant of the letters changes the weighting of the font in the reader’s eye, making it appear less solid. Your readers need to work harder to identify the letters and words. Use quotation marks to signal a quote or a name and use a bold font for added emphasis– but use it sparingly as large chunks of bold font are hard to read. A word of caution, some screen readers will shout out words in bold, this might not be the desired impact you were hoping for!

We learn to read words that use lower case letters, only using capital letters at the start of sentences. Using capital letters for full

Read more about inclusive communications:

EFDS’s Inclusive Communications Guide is an ideal starting point to learn how to reach a wider audience, especially disabled people. As well as providing essential better practice guidance on planning, terminology and language, the guide explains the purpose of accessible formats and shows how providers can get the best from their communications.

Download it free at www.efds.co.uk



3

Engaging disabled people in sport and activity - the role of supporters

When thinking about encouraging disabled people to be active, it is not just disabled people who need to be aware of existing opportunities.

What do we mean by supporters? A supporter is someone who provides ongoing support to a disabled person. For example, helping them to go shopping or assist with household tasks or providing advice and encouragement when trying new activities. A supporter can be anyone from a spouse, family member, friend or paid professional carer. Why are supporters important? Our research suggests that disabled people often have much narrower social networks. The people in these networks often have much stronger relationships with the disabled person and a greater level of influence in helping them make decisions. In fact, 8 in 10 supporters said they would have some role in helping a disabled person decide to take part in sport or physical activity.

The level of influence supporters have in encouraging disabled people is impacted by many things. Most notable is the relationship they have with the disabled person. Parents often have more influence than professional carers and the extent to which supporters themselves are active - more active disabled people having more active supporters.

What role do supporters play in encouraging disabled people to be active? Supporters not only influence the decision of whether a disabled person is active, but they also offer a range of emotional and physical support to enable them to be active. This includes:

• Being a motivator or inspirer

• Offering logistical and organisational support

• Acting as a cheerleader or encourager

• Acting as a researcher, finding new activities

• Being a confidence builder or consoler

• Providing hands-on support and environment management

A supporter can be anyone from a spouse, family member, friend or paid professional carer.

8 in 10 supporters said they have some role in helping a disabled person decide to take part in sport or physical activity.

So what do supporters need to know to recommend an activity to a disabled person? There are a number of details supporters need to know before suggesting a suitable activity. These include:

• Safety - of the disabled person and other participants

• Environment - from the venue’s general attitude and focus to approachable, caring and willing staff and other workforce

• Participants - is the activity inclusive or disability focused? Which is more appropriate for the individual?

• Facilities - from the actual sports equipment and facilities, through to venue set-up and accessibility

• Focus - emphasis needs to be on fun, socialising, movement and relaxation

So what can you do to harness the power of the supporter?

It is important to ensure that the supporter is aware of opportunities available for disabled people. Ensuring relevant information is available to answer their concerns is paramount. In order to reach them you should focus on:

The imagery used

• Imagery which does not suggest an activity is too strenuous but shows people having fun is preferred

• For professional carers, imagery which overtly shows disability is preferred, enabling them to quickly determine the relevance of an activity. This kind of imagery is less well received by parents and family

The language used

• Not all supporters will understand what an ‘inclusive’ offer may mean. So use images to help explain

Stories giving examples

• Use examples of disabled people who are already engaged in the activity

• Give feedback from other supporters who have had a positive experience

Contact information

• Make sure it is clear supporters can contact you with further questions

Place information where supporters will find it

• Online searches are the first port of call. Maximise exposure by using the most relevant search terms

• Word of mouth among supporters is key. They trust recommendations from other people in a similar situation to themselves

Please refer to our supporters research for more information.



4

Understanding children and young people’s statutory services

Early Years Special Educational Needs Service (EYSENIS) This service consists of specialist teachers and practitioners that support the inclusion of children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) in playgroups and nursery settings.

Why is this significant to you? Through contacting this service you can build relationships with people who are in regular contact with disabled children and their families. This is a great opportunity to market your activities through their information networks including schools and children centres.

Education, Health and Social Care Plans (EHCPs) EHCPs have now replaced Statements of Special Educational Needs. Children and young people are assessed in a way that looks at the needs and outcomes across these three areas.

The main points to highlight are: • Plans support SEND individuals from birth to

25 years old• Personal budgets will now be an option - freedom

to choose activities and support• Joint working between health, social care and

education • Parental participation - each Local Authority will

have a forum

Why is it important to understand EHCPs? Three significant areas to be aware of are:1. The increase in use of personal budgets2. The local offer3. Parent Carer Forums

Personal Budget: Sport and physical activity needs to be an essential part of a disabled person’s social, health and wellbeing. Local support organisations involved in personal budgets should be informed about local activities, so they can encourage involvement by those who access personal budgets.

Local offer: An online information service promoting services, events and activities across education, health and social care for children and young people aged 0 - 25 with SEND. The purpose of a local offer is to enable parents, carers and young people to have easy access to the information they need. Sports organisations need to ensure that information on physical activity and sport are in the directory. In some counties magazines are published to enhance this service. By doing this you will be advertising directly to the intended target audience.

Parent Carer Forums: Each Local Authority has a voice for parent carers. Forums are a source of consultation and representation for families during the recent changes to the law and beyond. These forums are an excellent way to try to engage with parents and carers.

Tip: Give information on the importance of being active, local activities and contact information. They could also help to support your developments by using them as a consultative body.

To find your local forums visit the National Network of Parent Carer Forums: www.nnpcf.org.uk

Short breaks services These offer community-based and family-based breaks or support in the home through an allocation of hours. It is about the child and their wishes. They can choose to do the same thing or something different each time they access short breaks. Many families access this support.

What are the opportunities for you? Some Local Authorities have approved providers that deliver short breaks.

Could your activity be one of them? It would be advisable to ask to see if there are pots of money that providers can access.

A high number of children, young people and families access or enquire about services and providers. Therefore, for families to access sport and physical activity opportunities they need to be aware of what’s on offer. If you have an event, they may be able to include this on their current marketing and communications.

Tip: Remember to find a useful contact in the service that you can speak with regularly. They will become an advocate for you and your activities.

Information, Advice and Support Services (IASS, Previously Parent Partnership Service) IASS exist in each local authority supporting families with disabled children and young people from birth – 25 years.

By contacting IASS how can it benefit my activity? As a sports provider you need to give the information on local activities, sessions, clubs and events.

Tip: Remember to supply information in a variety of formats so that they can be used across the web, in newsletters, on social media, by email and printed copy to volunteers, networks and steering groups.

To find your local IASS service go to: www.iassnetwork.org.uk/find-your-iass

Other key services to help your engagement and maybe increase your marketing reach.

Support services for children with hearing and

visual impairments. These can vary from county

to county; check if these exist by contacting your

Local Authority.

Sure Start children centres’ aim is to improve

outcomes for young children and their families,

particularly those with the greatest need. They

are a good place to promote local clubs and

activities that they can signpost families towards.

Changes in funding have affected youth

services. However, it is worth connecting with

the local authority to ask if they have a Youth

Service and/or Disability/Inclusion service within

the youth team. Again, this could be another

great way to deliver activities and market

information on local inclusive clubs direct to

young people together.

Careers advice services may have a department

that directly supports disabled young people with

education, training and independent living needs.

Contact the council to find out who the provider

of these services are. This is a good starting point

to engage with young people aged 16 and over,

who are beginning to look for new and exciting

opportunities as their time in education reduces.

The staff in these services need to know what’s

on offer locally. They can signpost and promote

your activities to the young people who access

their service.



5

Engaging older people in physical activity

EFDS and Age UK have worked in partnership to create this resource.

Who to speak to? There are a variety of organisations you can speak to when looking to deliver activity for older people. Each group will have different contacts and areas of expertise, so you can pick who would be the best partner for your project. Age UK National Age UK National can advise on current national physical activity projects, provide contacts to local Age UKs and give advice on engagement with older people and the broader issues they face.

Age UK has delivered a series of physical activity programmes including ‘Fit as a Fiddle’. For examples of best practice and important findings go to: www.ageuk.org.uk/health-wellbeing/fit-as-a-fiddle/ Local Age UKs There are over 105 local Age UKs in England and these operate as separate charities to Age UK National. They vary in both size and the services they offer. They can support engagement with older people, help promote activities and provide a great depth of knowledge on current services for older people in your area. Some local Age UKs will have their own physical activity offer which can be an excellent place to start.

To find out more and find your local Age UK to go: www.ageuk.org.uk/about-us/local-partners/

Other support Other organisations and groups to engage with are care homes, day centres, sheltered housing and the Older People Team within your local council. Each of these will have different service users with specific needs. E.g. care homes may find it difficult to get residents to sessions off-site. Contacting them will help to understand the potential issues and needs among these groups of people.

There are more than 250 ‘Speaking Up for Our Age’ forums across England. They are independent organisations that are run by older people, for older people. Forums are a hub of information about older people’s needs and local services: www.ageuk.org.uk/get-involved/social-groups/older-peoples-forums/

Supporter (carers’) networks, local befriending and volunteering services can also be good sources of local expertise and guidance. For example, the Royal Voluntary Service has 35,000 volunteers helping older people stay active and able to contribute to society.

If your activity is aimed at a particular audience, you might consider contacting one of the many organisations which support specific groups of older people such as the British Legion (veterans), RNIB (sight loss), Action on Hearing Loss, Parkinson’s UK or the Alzheimer’s Society.

If you are looking to involve older people in the delivery of activities then University of the Third Age (U3A) have groups across the country. They offer opportunities for retired and semi-retired people to share their skills and try new activities and classes: www.u3a.org.uk

http://www.ageuk.org.uk/health-wellbeing/fit-as-a-fiddle/

http://www.ageuk.org.uk/health-wellbeing/fit-as-a-fiddle/

http://www.ageuk.org.uk/about-us/local-partners/

http://www.ageuk.org.uk/get-involved/social-groups/older-peoples-forums/

http://www.ageuk.org.uk/get-involved/social-groups/older-peoples-forums/

http://www.u3a.org.uk

For further information, please contact Age UK at [email protected] or telephone 020 3033 1622

Where to publicise your activities There are a range of places and people through which you can engage with older people, including:

• Local community magazines, newspapers, radio stations and websites

• Libraries, post offices, bookmakers, doctors’ surgeries, pharmacies, hospital waiting rooms, bus stations and buses, shops, pubs, churches and community noticeboards

• Through social workers, service providers, district nurses and day centres

• Local voluntary organisations and community groups

• Local newsletters e.g. parish newsletters

Top tips for engagement There are several things to consider when setting up or offering activities.

Much of the research, and all of the evidence gathered from Age UK’s physical activity projects, highlights fun and socialising as two key factors for involvement. You need to consider practical barriers for people attending an engagement event.

• Transport is a key challenge that is faced by many older people. For those taking public transport, how easy is it to get to the venue? If someone is arriving in their own car, is there adequate parking?

• The venue needs to be accessible to people with a range of impairments.

• The time that you put on an event. Not all older people are retired, so if you offer activities during the working day, many will not be able to take part. For those who are retired, there are certain times that do not work well and you should consult people on their preference.

• Modern technology. It is important to remember that only about half of older people regularly use the internet. However if you are seeking to engage with carers, friends or family, then digital might be the right method. It is important to mix your communication methods.

Consult with older people on the types of activities they would like to do. You can use the Age UK engagement toolkit to support you.

There are a range of places and people through which you can engage with older people.



mailto:fitasafiddle%40ageuk.org.uk?subject=

http://www.ageuk.org.uk/Documents/EN-GB/For-professionals/Age_UK_%20Engagement_Toolkit.pdf?dtrk=true

Know your audience - Club Matters Sport England · Know your audience These statistics provide you...

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